Day 23 - Lee Vining, California to Hurricane, Utah
I woke up early, had some coffee and packed my things onto the bike for the ride across Nevada. I first made this ride in 2010 on a Gen1 FZ1. I distinctly remember thinking that this stretch would be the worst part of the ride home. I distinctly remember being completely wrong. The high desert and mountain ridges of central Nevada is a surreal place. Even when it looks flat, the altitude is typically around 4500 feet. There are several mountain passes and ridges that reach 6500 feet. This is one of the best rides in the country...
I filled up my tank, my water reservoir and was soon riding south on US-395. With the mountains of Yosemite and Mammoth Lakes to my right, it was not too long before it was time to turn east into the wilderness. A few miles down CA-120 east, I stopped at the south entrance to Mono Lake and put the gopro on. A gopro's nemesis, bug splatter on the lens, ruined the video about 20 minutes down the road but I did get a few shots of Mono Lake worth showing.
Looking in the direction of Lake Tahoe at Mono Lake. There are gulls and shrimp here in the high desert.
Looking towards Nevada
The island is actually a lava dome. On the shore in the center of the photo is where High Plains Drifter was filmed. They tore down the movie set when filming was complete. Also, the right side of the photo burned a couple of years ago. It used to look more like the left side of the photo.
The next ~50 miles is a real pleasure to ride. Anyone who has been on this part of CA-120 will agree it is very nice all the way into Benton Hot Springs.
Just like the teams in the 19th century, I ride my horse up to the old Wells Fargo and take a break.
After a short break, I was on my way into Nevada. There was one lane construction in the area best suited to take photos of Boundary Peak. By the time I had the opportunity, this is as much of it as I could see.
About an hour and a half later, I rode into Tonopah. This place really surprises me. In 2010, it was almost a ghost town. In 2022, there is a Comfort Suites and a Love's Truck Stop going in. There are also Tesla EV chargers. It was such a dry dusty place in 2010. I kind of miss that. After a fill up and short break, it was time to head into the wilderness in earnest. Highway 6 to the ET Highway is about 50 miles and runs along the northern border of the Tonopah Test Range. For people like me who love military history, the area is very cool indeed.
At the northern start of the ET Highway is Warm Spring, Nevada. Now, just a boarded up cafe and bar.
Last time I rode through here in 2020, I photographed a herd of bighorn sheep drinking from the hot springs pool runoff under those trees.
In the background where the trees are, is where the hot springs are located. It is tempting to jump the fence and take a closer look but I know better than that. It seems some people do not and I have actually seen videos on youtube of people floating around in the pool. Never mind they were trespassing. More importantly is the fact that this is only about 30 miles north and ever so slightly west of the Nevada Test range. There were also some not so well known nuclear tests on this side of highway 6 so there's that. I would not get into any of the water around here.
This is another place I take routine breaks at. It is usually quiet and I may see a couple of cars. On this day, there were numerous cars, trucks and other service vehicles. There was no one to speak of out here 12 years ago.